US President Donald Trump confirmed on Saturday that the US military had launched a “large scale combat operation” in Iran after explosions were heard in cities around the Middle East.
“Our purpose is to protect the American people by eliminating the immediate threat from the Iranian regime, which is an evil group of very tough and scary people,” President Trump said in a video message on his Truth Social account.
According to Reuters, US officials earlier confirmed that the US military had attacked Iran by air and sea. Anonymous Iranian officials also said that several ministries and offices south of the Iranian capital, Tehran, were targeted.
Explosions were heard in major cities around the Middle East, including Jerusalem, as Iran launched a counterattack.
Joan Muwahed, a CNBC producer based in Dubai, reported hearing two explosions over the United Arab Emirates city.
Qatar and the UAE condemned Iran’s missile counterattack.
“The State of Qatar strongly condemns the targeting of Qatari territory by Iranian ballistic missiles, considering it a serious violation of national sovereignty,” Qatar’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
In the UAE, “The Ministry of Defense announced that the country came under open attack by Iranian ballistic missiles today, but UAE air defense forces responded with high efficiency and successfully intercepted a large number of missiles.”
President Trump said Iran continues to pursue nuclear weapons despite ongoing negotiations to end the program.
“In Operation Midnight Hammer last June, we killed off the regime’s nuclear programs in Fordow Net and Isfahan. After those attacks, we warned them never to resume their malign pursuit of nuclear weapons and repeatedly called for an agreement,” Trump said. “But Iran refused.”
“Instead, they sought to rebuild their nuclear program, threaten our very good friends and allies in Europe, threaten our troops overseas, and continue to develop long-range missiles that could soon reach the American mainland.”
A Pentagon spokesperson on duty said the department received a request for comment from CNBC via email but had no further statement.
Early Saturday morning, Israel launched a daylight attack on the Iranian capital, sending plumes of smoke billowing from the city’s downtown.
It was not immediately clear what the target was, but the attack came as the United States amassed a large fleet of fighter jets and warships in the region to pressure a deal over Iran’s nuclear program.
In addition to the capital Tehran, the cities of Isfahan, Qom, Qarazi and Kermanshah were also targeted.
Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked President Trump for his “historic leadership,” adding that the Iranian government “shed our blood, killed many Americans, and massacred our own people.”
“This brutal regime of terror must not be allowed to arm itself with nuclear weapons that threaten all humanity,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
The Israel Defense Forces announced that it had confirmed that a missile had been fired from Iran toward Israel.
“Defense systems are activated to thwart the threat. In the past few minutes, Home Front forces sent precautionary instructions directly to mobile phones in the relevant areas,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a tweet.
A senior Middle East diplomat with direct knowledge of recent negotiations between Iran and the United States told MS Now: “When the negotiations were close to success, once again Israel intervened and pre-empted diplomacy.”
sirens heard in tehran
Witnesses in Tehran heard the first explosion early Saturday morning. Iranian state television later reported on the explosion without specifying the cause.
At the same time, sirens rang throughout Israel. The Israeli military announced that it had issued an “active alert to prepare the public for the possibility of missiles being launched against the State of Israel.”
Iran strongly condemned the attack.
“The United States and the Zionist regime seriously violated Iran’s territorial integrity and national sovereignty and launched attacks against various targets and defense infrastructure, as well as non-military facilities, in different cities across our country,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Elsewhere, Bahrain said a US 5th Fleet service center came under missile attack. The U.S. Embassy in Bahrain’s capital Manama has issued a warning warning of “imminent drone/missile attack in Bahrain.”
“We urge U.S. citizens in Bahrain to shelter in place, review their security plans in the event of an attack, and remain vigilant in case of further attacks in the future. U.S. Embassy personnel are sheltering in place,” the embassy said in a tweet.
The U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, has also issued a shelter-in-place warning.
airline
Airlines rerouted flights after the attacks began.
A spokesperson for Dubai-based airline Emirates said: “We are adjusting our operations to the latest developments.”
german airlines Lufthansa German Airlines The airline announced it would suspend flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut and Oman until March 7, Reuters reported. dutch airlines KLM Royal Dutch Airlines A flight from Amsterdam to Tel Aviv has reportedly been cancelled.
President Trump warned in early February that “really bad things” would happen if Iran did not reach a deal over the future of its nuclear program. This weekend’s attacks follow a significant buildup of military assets in the oil-rich Middle East region.
This comes after the United States and Iran held a third round of talks in Switzerland on Thursday aimed at resolving the conflict.
Ahead of the talks, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran’s reluctance to talk about its ballistic missile program alongside its nuclear program was a “big, big problem.” Iran has said it is willing to compromise on its nuclear program, but has repeatedly said its missile program was never on the agenda for talks.
French President Emmanuel Macron said an outbreak of war between the United States, Israel and Iran would have “serious consequences”.
“The ongoing escalation is dangerous for everyone and must stop. The Iranian regime must understand that it has no choice but to engage in good faith in negotiations to end its nuclear and ballistic programs,” Macron said, calling for an “urgent” meeting of the U.N. Security Council.
Russia unequivocally condemned the attack by the United States and Israel.
“It is particularly condemnable that these attacks are being carried out again under the cover of a new negotiation process, ostensibly aimed at ensuring the long-term normalization of the situation around the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
There have long been signs that Washington is losing patience with Iran, after the White House announced that Iran was not meeting its core demands following previous talks.
This photo combination made on April 9, 2025 shows U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff (left) after meeting with Russian officials at Diriyah Palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on February 18, 2025. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi tells AFP during an interview at the Iranian Consulate General in Jeddah on March 7, 2025.
Evelyn Hochstein Amer Hirabi | AFP | Getty Images
In early February, Iran reportedly said in a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres that it would respond “firmly” if Tehran were to be attacked militarily.
Energy market participants are closely monitoring the rise in geopolitical tensions, with oil prices rising to six-month highs after President Trump said he was considering a military attack on Iran.
Iran, a founding member of OPEC, is a major oil producer and is located at the center of the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world’s oil passes.
Last June, the United States launched attacks on three Iranian nuclear facilities that intelligence officials suggested caused significant damage to Iran’s nuclear program. Iran reportedly retaliated with a retaliatory attack on a US air base in Qatar, causing minor damage but no casualties.
This is breaking news. Please check back for the latest information.
— Riya Bhattacharjee, Victor Loh and Emma Graham contributed to this article
